A

PROJECT REPORT

ON IMC OF

INDIAN WATCH INDUSTRY

Courtesy: Titan and Rado

Submitted to: Submitted by:

Dr.Prof.Madhavi Pandya Ajay Pratap Verma (18003)

Anshu kr. Gupta (18005)

Kunal Singh (18024)

Vineet Singh (18058)

INDIAN WATCH INDUSTRY

The watch market is continuing to become a very competitive marketplace fraught with competition, so much so that consumers are finding it more and more difficult to know which watch to choose. They want a trendy and fashionable watch, one that looks cool, but they also want one that looks nice and reflects their own personality. Nearly 34 million watches are sold through gray market channels. Currently, sales in India stand at an low number of 25 watches per 1,000 people, compared with 250 watches per 1,000 people in a developed society. So to pick the right watch can take time. Whether that be time spent researching on the internet - going from one website to another and comparing different brands, styles, and prices - or from going into shop after shop on a sunny Saturday afternoon when there is no space to move and sales assistants are trying their best to earn a sale. Either way, finding the exact right watch can be very difficult.

About Titan :

Titan watch division was started in 1987. At launch it was the third watch company in India after HMT and Allwyn. Titan entered at a time when HMT watches were enjoying a monopoly-situation. The venture took birth from the TATA group the constant innovation and effective market segmentation has been the great boon of the company. Today the company has a model for every price segment and every market. Initially when the mechanical technology was the norm, Titan went against the tide and built-up its line with Quartz. Styling was not a factor initially with the Indian watch industry but Titan was there to make a difference and gave a fresh breath of life to the age-old rusty style of wristwatches. Titan formed a joint venture with Timex, which lasted until 1998, and setup a strong distribution network across India. As of 2005, Titan watches account for a 25% share of the total Indian market and are also sold in about 40 countries through marketing subsidiaries based in London, Aden, Dubai and Singapore. Titan watches are sold in India through retail chains controlled by Titan Industries.

Titan Industries has claimed to have manufactured the world's slimmest wrist watch - Titan Edge.[3] Produced indigenously after four years of research and development, the Titan Edge has a total slimness of just 3.5 mm and a wafer thin movement of 1.15 mm. Apart from the Titan Edge, Titan also offers Steel, Regalia, Raga, Fastrack, Technology, Nebula, Bandhan, Sonata, Octane, special RHosur, Tamil Nadu.

Fastrack is a popular brand among youth in India. Fastrack watches come in a variety of styles, shapes and colors’.

On 4 March, 2010, Titan Industries Announced the launch of its very first Titan flagship store is located at Opposite Shoppers Stop, Bandra Linking Road, Mumbai, India. Store is spread over a spacious 2500 sq ft and houses more than 1500 watches on display from Titan like Purple, Automatics, Orion, Raga, Edge, Nebula, and many more.

Titan Industries is the worlds fifth largest and India's leading manufacturer of watches. The company has manufactured more than a 100 million watches till date; and has a customer base of over 80 million. The umbrella brand Titan is one of India's leading watch brands that brought about a paradigm shift in the Indian watch market, offering quartz technology with international styling.

The brand Titan is committed to offering its consumers watches that represent the compass of their imagination. Titan's customers are therefore consistently introduced to exciting new collections, which connect, with various facets of their deep−rooted yearnings for self-expression. The new brand philosophy of Titan, encapsulated in the words "Be More", touches this as well as all other aspects of the brand.

The Titan brand architecture comprises several collection and sub−brands, each of which is a leader in its segment. Notable among them are: Titan Edge The world's slimmest watch which stands for the philosophy of "less is more"; Titan Raga the feminine and sensuous accessory for today's woman, Nebula − crafted in solid 18k gold and precious stones. Several other popular collections like Heritage, Aviator, Regalia, and Octane & WWF also form a part of the Titan wardrobe.

Today, the Titan portfolio has over 60% of the domestic market share in the organized watch market. The company has 247 exclusive showrooms christened World of Titan', making it amongst the largest chains in its category backed by 700 after−sales−service centers. The company has a world−class design studio that constantly invents new trends in wrist watches.

PRECISION ENGINEERING DIVISION

Precision Engineering Division of Titan was started in 2002. It has become one of the leading manufacturers of Precision Parts for Automotive and Aerospace Industries.

The Diverse Product range includes pointers, dashboard clusters like Fuel Gauge, Temperature Gauge, Gear Shift Indicators, Clocks for Automobiles and any kind of Injection molded Plastic parts, Electromechanical Assemblies for automobiles, all kinds of pressed and turned parts for automobiles. The Tooling Sector of Precision Engineering Division manufactures all kinds of Press Tool, Molds, Jigs, and Fixtures for various industries.

Titan Automation Solution, a part of Precision Engineering Division is a leading Automation Solution Provider for all kind of industries.

FACE OF TITAN

The Company also runs a one of a kind contest in the retail industry called the Face Of Titan (FOT) contest to identify the most talented Sales person, Manager & Service personnel Technician & Cashier. The contest recognizes the best based on a set of parameters that give a measure of the overall development of the individual in each of the categories mentioned above and is not solely on sales.

This program was conceived as an assessment centre for frontline staff - by Aparna Ponnappa, inspired at that time by staff who expressed their desire to 'perform' and 'be recognized' for what they do. This program enabled the retail wing of Titan to empower staff to take charge of their own skill development and provided them with a healthy and fun environment to compete and showcase their own talent.

The contest leapfrogged into the digital era from the year 2006-07 with the introduction of IT in the capturing of survey data across all of its 200+ stores, that year also saw the introduction of the data gathered at the store level being used to profile the staff at various levels using a custom built web based software developed by I.GEN Labs

IMC STRATEGIES

� Targeted the typically price sensitive yet discerning Indian customer • “International watch you can pay for in rupees” • “You don’t need to pay in dollars, pounds or dirhams to buy a Titan watch”

� Targeted the premium segment of “look and fashion conscious” customers • “To find watches like these you don’t have to go to Europe, Japan, America or a

duty free shop” � Promoted the concept of a watch being the ideal gift

• “Next time your husband wants to buy you a saree, ask for a Titan watch instead” � The rationale behind their ads being constant bombardment if the “Titan” brand name � Ads are a blend of sophistication and simplicity

PROMOTION:-

1. Advertising 2. Sales promotion 3. Public relation

Advertising media:

• Television media • Print media • Internet

Titan brand ambassador:

• Titan Brand: Aamir Khan • Sonata: Mahendra Singh Dhoni • Raga: Gul Panag, Rani Mukherjee • Xylys: Rahul Bose

It has appointed Mahendra Singh Dhoni (himself belonging to Ranchi) as the brand ambassador of its Sonata collection to reach out to the rural population. On the other hand, his counter-part Aamir Khan was capturing the minds of the urban segments.

It brought out the Aqua, a trendy collection for the youth. Raga was for the sophisticated Indian woman. This was a significant move as the women were now more liberal in the society and the corporate culture was establishing its roots in India. The needs of women throughout the nation were changing and the brand was aimed to cater these very needs. Dash for the kids. Sonata for the masses and the budget-conscious. Its brands like Bandhan were aimed towards couples while EXCTA and SPECTRA towards the common class for office wear.

Titan tagline: Be more

Fast track tagline: How many you have?

Public relation

• Gift concept • Promotion On Occasions • Special discounts on festive and marriage seasons.

Sales promotion

• Sponsorship • Seasonality • Promotion through Contests • Old watch exchange offer to attract customers

POSITIONING

� Market Segmentation • The young and teenagers, who are looking for their first watch • The low ownership segment like women • Middle and upper segments of society

Price range of Rs 500 – Rs 15000 � International watch at Indian prices � A watch that builds your image � A brand which represents style, status and technology

• A “Good Looking Watch” � First watch company to brand its showrooms

• Titania Titan watch boutiques in Bangalore • TimeZone

DISTRIBUTION

� Manufacturer – Retailer – Customer � First to go for exclusive showrooms

• Did away with retailers • Wholesaler’s importance reduced

� Set up a chain of service centres, with close proximity to the marketplace

� Innovative planning of showrooms • Watch buying a pleasurable experience

� Extensive use of C&F agents to reduce distribution costs

New advertising campaign (Use of social media for Fastrack brand):

Good news for the bikers. Titan Industries’ sub brand Fastrack has launched a new line of new biker accessories including its Bikers range of eye gear, and the ‘no hands’ Neon disc range of watches.

But that’s not what the main focus of this post is about.

What is more interesting here for marketing professional is the way they have launched it. Apart from the ad campaign on TV featuring John Abraham, they have embarked on leveraging the social media, making Fastrack one of the few companies in India to take the lead on embracing PR 2.0.

Fastrack has come out with the Fastrack social media news room for bloggers. They are using the newsroom to share information and news on Fastrack. It also features social media press releases (Bikers and Neon Disk), Flickr streams of Fastrack gears, social bookmarking buttons, videos, media coverage, product and company information, spokesperson profile, RSS feeds, and more.

For the consumers, Fastrack has launched two Face book groups called Life on Fastrack and Bikers on the Fastrack, which have 121 and 71 members already, as on yesterday. Quite good I must say that the groups have attracted so many people in such a short time. By the way, check out the Fastrack main site – not the usual corporate stiffness but attractive and very consumer-oriented featuring contests, fun stuff, opinion polls among others. They plan to follow up with a Twitter part as well.

It’s good to see corporate in India waking up to the new web 2.0 oriented media space of today, otherwise many corporate outside the IT vertical usually do not have a clue about the whole peer-to-peer thingy or have some vague misconception about it. On the Indian watch industry, Fastrack has taken a lead on this front with this and it will be interesting to see how much benefit they are able to derive out of it. Will be good to follow this campaign and review in say six months again.

Corporate globally have been using the social media, read these corporate blogging case studies, to benefit for their businesses. There have been small organizations that have used the social media as a cost-effective way of competing their rivals with huge marketing communication budgets. In India, only a few seem to have gone on this route. Fastrack’s initiative is a good start that will encourage others to follow and identify social media as a good and low priced source of advertising.

Titan Industries Ltd. Sales (2007-2008) = Rs. 3000 crores (rounded off) Net profit after tax = Rs. 160 crores (rounded off) In its silver jubilee year, Titan Industries Limited has come out with a sterling performance. Sales income for the year 2009-10 was Rs.4,703.12 crores, crossing the billion dollar (US) figure and registering a growth of 22.2% over last year sales of Rs. 3,847.72 crores. The year started on a sombre note against the backdrop of a slowdown worldwide but the recovery of the Indian economy and strategic steps taken by Titan Industries have helped register a historic performance. Profit before tax for the Company grew by 39.4% to Rs.321.32 crores, while net profit grew by 57.5% over last year to Rs.250.32 crores.

The World of Titan

Collection of Titan:

Fastrack for the cool and funky fetishes of the youth while Insignia, Steel and Nebula were all aimed at the luxury watches segment.

The unique designs and price variations enabled it to reach all classes and customers. Today, the Titan group has its own retail shops throughout the country. One can now see the “World of Titan” in almost every city and town of the India.

Rado (watch):

RADO is a Swiss manufacturer of high-end watches, with headquarters in Lengnau, Switzerland. It is noted for its use of scratch-proof materials, a field in which it is considered a pioneer. Today the company produces about half a million watches a year with a staff of about 300 in total.

Formed in 1917, RADO initially produced watch movements only. In 1957 the company launched its first collection of watches under the RADO brand. In 1962 the RADO Diastar Original, the world's first scratch-proof watch, was launched. It has been in production ever since. RADO is very peculiar in the watch industry, claiming high-end status despite not having as long a history as brands such as Omega. Rather the brand claims its elite position by virtue of its technological innovations since then.

In 1983 RADO became part of the SMH group which was renamed in 1998 as the Swatch Group. RADO differs from some of the more traditional luxury Swiss watchmakers in that it uses unconventional precious materials to achieve a more futuristic look. RADO has pioneered the use of a number of these materials, e.g., high-tech diamonds, ceramics, lanthanum & sapphire crystal. However, many RADO watches are (at least, partially) made of more traditional materials such as gold & steel.

Other than the material, RADO watches also look very different from most of the other luxury makers. The company is much more adventurous in constructing the shape of its watches than would normally be expected of a high-end maker. Market reaction to this is generally mixed, with some preferring the look of the more traditional makers, & others appreciating the more distinct RADO look.

RADO advertises itself as the inventor of scratch-proof watches

Design A tangible interpretation of imagination Innovative design and high-tech non-scratch materials are the essential distinguishing marks of the Rado brand. As a leader in the top-of-the-range market, Rado has become famous throughout the entire world for its research into materials science. It is the use of sapphire, ceramics, and even high-tech diamonds that affords the strong, unique character of the Rado watch.

Rado’s design concepts draw their inspiration from the intrinsic qualities of the materials used. For Rado, form is intimately linked to more intangible values, and the brand is as ever committed to the quest for outstanding new ideas. This philosophy of surpassing oneself and of tangible interpretations of the imagination has been rewarded with numerous international design prizes.

From 1957 to the present day, Rado’s story is marked by a prodigious number of pioneering innovations. One of the most sensational of these is without any doubt the creation of the «high-tech diamond » by the transformation of carbon into a nano crystalline diamond with a Vickers

hardness number of 10,000 ( V10K). This technological prowess has led to the hardest material in the world, with its own entry in the Guinness Book of Records. RADO differs from the traditional Swiss watch makers in that it leans towards innovative uses of high tech materials in distinct design. RADO has focused on pioneering the use of a number of materials that are unique within the watch making industry, such as e.g. hard metal (tungsten- and titanium-carbide), ceramics, lanthanum and sapphire crystal. In 2004 the RADO vision was realized with the introduction of the V10K. Coating the watch with high tech diamonds made the V10K the hardest watch on Earth, realized by the Guinness Book of World Records. The newer RADO watches are also distinct from the traditional Swiss watch industry in that their aesthetic is unique. Market reaction tends to be mixed to such a strong aesthetic, with many whom appreciate the unique and distinct RADO look and those who do not. During their time, RADO has received more than 20 elite international design awards, from the RED DOT Award to the IF Design Award, for both their product and most recently, their collaboration with Jasper Morrison for an innovative watch box that mimics the shape of the human wrist.

Pricing RADO watches vary in pricing according to model, age and materials but the core collection of RADO pieces will range from about US$700 to about US$28,000. Models that include pave dials of diamonds and baguette diamonds can cost approximately US $30,000 to $250,000.

In India its range starts from Rs.33000/- and above.

IMC Strategies Personal Selling The traffic and the transactions: To confirm the effectiveness of the advertising campaign, Rado can compare the amount of customers and transactions in the periods of before, during, and after broadcasting by calculating the foot traffic in each of the Swatch stores. This will be calculated two weeks before broadcasting, during the broadcasting, and two weeks after broadcasting. Also based on the transactions, Rado can analyze what product of the CreArt Collection is selling best and can modify the lead product in the media of the Indian market. Sales Promotion Online Coupons: Rado can measure the effectiveness of the online coupons by providing customers a promotion code for online coupons on the official website, Facebook, or Twitter. Rado then will know the number of customers who use the online coupons, the total purchase amount, and what online shopping channels they chose to purchase from, such as Rado‘s official site, Amazon, or Yahoo! Shopping. Online Ratings: Consumer engagement can be measured through ratings and comments on the commercials on the Internet. Rado then can understand the customers‘commercial preference, and properly judge which commercial to run. Print Ad Coupons: If Rado decides to place coupons with a promotion code in printed ads, like newspapers and magazines, they could measure interest based on the number of customers who redeem the coupon, the total of the purchase, where they purchase, such as in Swatch stores or department stores. Publicity The media coverage is examined in each medium. The success of the IMC strategy will be determined on whether the news is covered in the main media.

The press Television Magazine-General interest Magazine- Fashion and beauty

Cyber Marketing Click-Through Rates Mobile text message: The click-through rate will measure the percentage of people that clicked on a CreArt Campaign text message to enter campaign related websites. Internet: The click-through rate will be measured by the percentage of people that landed on a Rado-related website and social media site and the duration in which they stayed. Social Media: Rado MTV Playground and Swatch website, face book and twitter.

Twitter: The Swatch.br group, which was created in June 2009, and has 230 followers as of today. The goal was to increase the number of users by 15% (by 15 people) during the campaign. Metrics will include engagement measurements, reach measurements, and trend measurements. These will measure the number of tweets, retweets, followers, among other measurements. Progress can also be tracked via TwitterGrader.com‘s online tools. Direct Market: Create fashionable posters and brochures that the target market will want to keep forever.

Lisa ray has been signed as the brand ambassador of the Rado watches as a part of its IMC strategy

They have started a new worldwide advertising campaign with a series of unexpected images on the sparkling billboard.

As a IMC strategy they create their own design stage and exhibition for the full demonstration of their product and design.

In china as a youth awareness campaign they launched a young design prize to create a brand image and target market in china.

Distribution To maintain a direct link with end consumers, The Rado has created a retail section that develops global retail strategies and new approaches to consumer market. The distribution channels that they have strongly focused on are Tourbillion Boutiques, Tech-Airports, selected Boutiques, and worldwide distribution. IMC Mission The overall IMC mission of the 2009 CreArt Collection campaign is to create a connection between Swatch group and art in order to increase sales. CreArt combines events, live music, and monumental video projections with contemporary performance art. Currently, there are four television spots, each unique to the four artists who are highlighted in this campaign. This campaign also utilizes a partnership with MTV‘s Playground website, among other elements that are further discussed in IMC Tactics. What is going on in the target market right now?

The Rado watch has a global target: young students or professionals, aged 18-35. The target embodies youthful, provocative, stylish, and artistic traits. The wearable art is suitable for this target and any casual and joyful moment they might experience. Based on VALs, these people are Experiencers and Strivers. Experiences are motivated by self-expression and are avid consumers who spend a comparatively high proportion of their income on fashion, entertainment, and socializing. Their purchases reflect the emphasis that they place on looking good and having ‗cool’ stuff. Meanwhile, Strivers are trendy and fun loving. They favour stylish products that emulate the purchases of people with greater material wealth.

SWATCH GROUP SALES REVENUE

Watch Revenue ($, millions)

2006 2007 2008 2009

The Swatch Group*

3,706.07 4,462.06 4,307.64 3,966.59

SWOT ANALYSIS OF INDIAN WATCH INDUSTRY

STRENGTHS

� Watches as a fashion accessory � Quality or price positioning � Brand image � Market segments with large potential:

women, youth, children, sportsmen, the budget-conscious and, of course, the big spenders.

� Customer value and offered after sales service in a showroom environment.

WEAKNESSES

� Main USP is low cost watch.

� Lack of futuristic approach

� Lack of flexible thinking

OPPORTUNITIES

� Nearly 34 million watches are sold through gray market channels.

� Currently, sales in India stand at an low number of 25 watches per 1,000 people, compared with 250 watches per 1,000 people in a developed society.

� Exchanging offer � Rural market

THREATS

� Too many players will dilute the market & the profit margin

� Low priced China watches.

� Evolution of Mobile phones.

CONCLUSION & SUGGESSIONS

The opening of the Indian market and the arrival of premium Swiss brands has certainly led to Indian consumers being exposed to global brands, styles and various price levels. To the Indian consumers, the high price of Swiss watches has helped them to realize the value of Indian brands, particularly of Titan, which offers equivalent quality, but at lower prices and with better distribution and service same time it has also exposed them to real quality and style. Titan has shown its differentiation, and customer centric approach which helped them to get the market. Whereas Rado is maintaining its international standards and targeting a totally different class, but if they really want to compete Titan in Indian market they have to reframe their pricing strategy by launching some medium priced watches with international standards to target mass. It also need to target different Indian masses with a wide range of differentiated products.

Both the companies had a lot to learn from each other’s unique strategies in all respect.